My Second Chance
by snowbeam12
Summary: Marinette is injured in the final battle against Hawkmoth and ends up giving up her miraculous, losing all faith that she is good enough. Join her as she slowly learns that everyone gets injured and needs a little help. Remember to Read & Review. Enjoy. SNOWBEAM12


**_Well here is another little one-shot that I did for Marinette and Adrien because I really ship them. I hope that you enjoy. I don't mention it but yes, I made Chloe the super hero Queen Bee._**

 ** _I don't own any of the Miraclous Ladybug characters. I just own the story idea and concept. Don't forget to leave me a review on what you thought of the story._**

 ** _Enjoy_**

 ** _Snowbeam12_**

My Second Chance

A young woman was silent as she walked along the sidewalk, softly humming to herself. She carried two shopping bags, one in each hand. She had raven blue hair that was pulled into two pigtails that blew in the soft autumn breeze as she walked. She glanced over her shoulder when she heard someone what sounded like a cat. She frowned, but shrugged when she didn't see anything.

"Must have been my imagination." She mumbled before she walked into a small bakery silently. She greeted her parents with a hello and a smile. She had barley walked up the stairs when her mother called her back down. She sat her bags on the steps before hurrying back down into the bakery. She walked in with her mother facing with her back to her.

"Yes mama?" she stated softly. Her mother turned around and was holding a small cream colored kitten in her arms.

"Marinette, it seems to me you have a little follower." Her mother teased, smiling. Tom walked up front and laughed when he saw his wife still holding the kitten that had snuck in behind his daughter. Marinette smiled and shook her head, carefully taking the tiny creature in her arms.

"Mama I can't keep her. You guys told me when I was little no pets." She stated, looking at her parents beaming faces, confused.

"Marinette you're a young woman now. We told you no then because you were a child and couldn't take care of a pet." Her father stated. She smiled happily and quickly walked back upstairs and laid her new kitten on her bed carefully.

"Well what should I name you?" Marinette questioned to the blue-eyed kitten. She tapped her chin and smiled.

"I know. We'll name you after my once bestest friend. Tikki." She stated with a sad smiling. The kitten gave a small meow before she buried herself in the blankets on Marinette's bed while she pulled out the fabric from the two bags. She glanced at the designs she'd drawn up to enter in the latest Agreste fashion contest. She couldn't help but get an idea. She smiled and dug through some of her old fabrics that she still had plenty of and found the ivory color she was looking for.

"Mix this with the sparkling blue I bought. I think this could work." She whispered smiling. She set to work on cutting, pinning and sewing the dress. It was well into midnight when she finished. She silently hung it up in her closet and glanced at her cellphone. She sighed when she saw the time and decided it was time for bed.

She grabbed her night pants and a tank top and walked into the bathroom silently after she'd changed to brush her teeth. She'd barley placed a foot into the bathroom when she heard a meow. She glanced over her shoulder and saw Tikki peaked over the wall of blankets, watching her with those blue eyes.

"I'll be right back silly kitty." She laughed. Tikki only meowed and moved to climb out of the bed. Marinette sighed and walked over to her, picking her up.

"Fine. Silly kitty you can come with me." She stated. She walked to the bathroom and sat her down on the small pink rug on the floor while she brushed her teeth. She hummed to herself until she heard something outside her window. She quickly shut off her light and hid in a corner while someone snuck in. She felt around for something to use as a weapon for self-defense.

"Princess?" a soft voice called. The figure turned around, looking for the young girl in the room. Tikki hissed, stepping out from behind her new master. Marinette quickly scooped her up in her arms, turning on the lamp on her desk. She glared at the boy standing in the middle of the room.

"Chat Noir? What are you doing here?! I've already told you to stay away from me!" she snapped. She sat the kitten down on her bed, before she turned and glared at him. The young cat boy sat in her chair, just sitting there, watching her.

"I wanted to check on you. I heard some men in my group talking about you today and I was worried." He explained. She rolled her eyes and sat cross legged on her bed in silence.

"I wouldn't be involved in their talks if you would stop visiting me. People are going to notice when the hero of Paris sneaks into the bakery nearly every night." Marinette stated softly. He frowned when she said hero of Paris. He still wondered what had happened to his partner, his best friend, his other half. She had vanished shortly after the final battle with Hawkmoth.

"I just…you're easy to talk to. You're the only one I have now that Ladybug is gone." He stated softly. He glanced at the small kitten sitting curled up in her master's lap. He couldn't help but smile, thinking about the black kitten waiting for him at home. He glanced down when his ring beeped, but chose to ignore it.

"So, what is her name?" he questioned, gesturing to the cream-colored kitten. She gave a meow as she climbed back among the blankets.

"Tikki. Her name is Tikki." She stated softly smiling. She moved to get up to turn on the lights when she felt a sharp pain up her leg. She stumbled, falling back onto the bed. Chat was on his feet in an instant.

"What's wrong?" he demanded walking over. Marinette pulled up her pants leg and carefully massaged her fingers along the white scar that ran from her ankle up to her knee. Chat's eyes went wide when he saw it. He could tell that it had been healed for a while but knew the pain of old scars.

"I'm fine." She sighed once the pain had subsided. She stood back up and walked over to the light switch, flipping it on. Her room was lit up, showing the many ideas on paper around her room. Chat sat back down with a frown on his face.

"How come I hadn't seen that before?" he questioned softly.

"It usually doesn't bother me. It hasn't for several years. I don't understand why I has now." She stated softly. She glanced up when she heard knocking on her trap door window. Volpina dropped down, landing gracefully on the floor. She glanced over at Marinette and winked. Volpina was the only one that knew Marinette had once been the illustrious Ladybug, but had given up her miraculous when she had been badly injured in the battle with hawkmoth. She had seen herself as a burden to her partner after she'd nearly gotten him killed.

"Chat come on. We have patrol. I'm sure Marinette would like some alone time to…I don't know…sleep? It is after midnight." Volpina reprimanded him. Chat gave her a grin before he gave her a deep, over-exaggerated bow. She giggled before watching the two heroes leave. A sad smile graced her face. She missed her teammates but she couldn't stand the thought of putting them in harm's way.

"I'm sorry guys." She whispered to no one in particular.

Around the 7th of November, Chat Noir could be seen sulking around the Eiffel Tower. It was well known that had been the meeting day and spot of the Luck Duo. He sat on the highest level of the tower in silence. He looked down at the city his Lady had fought so hard to protect. He sighed, lying his head against the railing.

"Where are you m'lady?" he whispered. He frowned when he saw a young woman walking down the sidewalk, unknowingly being followed by two older men. He stood up and growled, grabbing his staff. He quickly jumped and pressed the green paw print on the side, causing it to extend. He ran along the roofs, following the men as they corned the woman in an ally. He had just landed in the shadows when he heard a hiss from the woman's backpack. His eyes widened when he spotted the cream-colored kitten and realized who the woman was. Marinette was cornered, her eyes wide as the men walked towards her.

"Get back!" she snapped, holding out what looked to be a piece of wood. Chat moved to step out of the shadows when she caught one of the men in the side of the head. He watched amused as the other lunged at her. She had proven herself to be able to stand her ground.

"Get away from me!" she sneered as the second one started walking towards her. She took a step back, stepping right into a punch of trash bags. Chat saw red when she screamed in obvious pain. She fell backwards, her leg getting caught up in some chicken wire that had been thrown away among the rest of the trash. She watched as the man stepped closer, her blue eyes going wide scared. Chat Noir stepped out of the shadows and tackled the man angered.

"Don't touch her!" he sneered, easily throwing the man. He landed on top of his buddy, sending them both back into the dirt. Chat growled and picked Marinette up, careful as he tore the wire from her skin. He went to grab his staff when shire pain shot through his side. He growled and quickly pressed the button, doing his best to ignore the pain and the liquid running down his side.

When they arrived on the balcony leading to Marinette's room, she carefully helped him sit on the ground. He leaned against the stone wall, breathing hard. His breathing was short and labored as he tried to hide the pain. Marinette frowned, being able to see through his mask. She was just about to move his hand to look at it when she heard someone land behind her. Queen Bee and Volpina both stood behind her, having seen Chat running across the rooves.

"What happened?" Queen Bee demanded, kneeling next to the cat themed hero. Marinette was silent as she removed his hand. He closed his eyes tight.

"N-N-Nothing Bee. Just…me being an idiot." He growled through clenched teeth. Volpina looked down at the blunette and frowned a tiny bit. Marinette had ripped her dress skirt and was pressing it against the still bleeding wound.

"Chat this looks bad. You need to do something before you lose too much blood." Queen Bee demanded. Marinette pushed the yellow and black themed hero away and helped Chat into her room. He laid on her bed, all but clasping.

"Hang in there you silly kitty." She whispered. Chat's eyes went wide as he stared after her. She walked into the bathroom to get a cold, wet rag. Tikki jumped up on the bed and laid down at his side. She licked his hand carefully. Queen Bee and Volpina both stood in the room, watching their leader and partner as he struggled to take a deep enough breath. Blood still dripped from the knife wound but not as badly. Chat groaned when his ring beeped, signaling he only had a few minutes left.

"Chat…I hate to say it but you might have to release your transformation so she can clean the wound properly." Volpina suggested.

"No! Our identities are a secret to protect ourselves!" Queen Bee snapped, stepping in front of the wounded hero. Marinette walked back in and knelt beside him, gently cleaning the blood from his side. After a few minutes, he managed to get the bleeding to stop. The wound wasn't as bad as the blood had made it look. She glanced at Chat and sighed. It was the shock of the pain that had hurt him so badly. He had already drifted off to sleep.

"Thanks for your help. But we need to get him home." Volpina stated softly. Queen Bee was about to wake Chat when Marinette raised her hand to stop her.

"Leave him. He needs to rest. His body was going into shock. I won't let him revile his identity. I promise. I know how much that means to all of you." Marinette explained. Queen Bee frowned but nodded. She easily snuck back out the window. Volpina stayed and sat down in the chair by Marinette's sewing station. Marinette glanced over at the fox hero and gave her a sad smile.

"Are you ever going to tell him who you were?" she questioned softly. Marinette only shrugged a tiny bit causing her friend to sigh. The room was filled with a bright orange light as Volpina released her transformation leaving Ayla and the kwami Trixx in her spot.

"Marinette…I know that you miss that life. If you just told him…maybe he could help you get back what you lost." Ayla suggested.

"What I lost? Ayla, what I lost was the confidence I had as Ladybug. I nearly got him killed. I nearly got myself killed. You just don't understand how much I lost when Hawkmoth's akuma destroyed the warehouse we were in. Remember? You found me, in that ally, with the gash cut deep into my leg. I still have the scars." Marinette sighed. Ayla frowned and shook her head. Trixx flew over and hovered in front of the once Ladybug.

"Marinette, I haven't known you as long as Ayla or Chat Noir have but in the short time I have, I have learned that you are a fighter. What was the real reason you gave up Tikki?" the orange fox kwami questioned. Marinette looked down at her than over at the bed where Chat Noir slept.

"I was scared. The old fears I had had when I first became Ladybug had resurfaced. I didn't feel like I was strong enough to protect the man I had fallen hopelessly in love with." She whispered, tears stinging her eyes. Ayla carefully hugged her.

"Talk to the grand guardian girl. We may not have a Hawkmoth anymore but we still need Lady Luck." She whispered. Marinette sniffled before she rubbed her aching leg. She was thankful the wire hadn't broken the skin. That wasn't something she wanted to explain to her parents. She only sighed before she curled up beside Chat and drifted to sleep with Tikki against her side.

The following morning, she woke up in her bed alone. She sat up and yawned, carefully stretching. She glanced around and realized that her balcony trap door had been left open but the snow hadn't settled on her bed yet so she knew Volpina and Chat Noir hadn't been gone long.

"Marinette, darling, your friends are here!" her mother yelled from downstairs. She yawned and stretched before she got up to get dressed. She dressed in a simple blue jean dress she'd recently made. Tikki sat on her bed watching her in silence. Marinette smiled and walked over, picking the cream-colored kitten up smiling.

"Come on. Let's go see what my friends want." Marinette stated smiling. She hadn't really stayed in contact with any of her classmates after they'd all graduation. She knew Nathaniel had made it big and was now a well-known artist. Ayla had gone on to become a world known journalist. Nino now DJed around Paris. Her heart sank when she thought about Adrien. After it had been discovered his father was Hawkmoth he'd taken over Agreste Fashion Industry but he hardly made public appearances and didn't talk to any of his friends or classmates other than Nino.

"There you are. They're down in the bakery." Her mother stated as she stepped down into the small family room. Marinette frowned, seeing her mother beaming and she could tell she was up to something.

"Mama what are you planning?" she questioned, sitting the cream-colored kitten down on the carpet. Her mother only gave her a knowing smile before going back to making breakfast. Marinette walked downstairs into the bakery silently. Her eyes widened when she saw Adrien, Nino and Ayla standing around talking. Adrien was dressed in black slacks, a white shirt with a simple light blue shirt pulled over it. He was laughing at whatever it was Nino had said.

"Adrien…" Marinette whispered, standing frozen in the doorway. The kitten around her feet meowed, catching the attention of the others. Ayla and Nino greeted her with a wave while Adrien walked over and gave her a tight hug.

"Hey. It's been a while." He stated smiling.

"Y-Y-Yeah. It has." She whispered. She looked up at him wide eyed. It was rare to see him out of the office and having fun like he did when they were still in school.

"We were going to catch a movie and wanted to know if you would like to join us?" Ayla questioned.

"Um…I'll have to speak with my parents first. I don't know if they need my help in the bakery today or not." She stated softly. At that moment, Tom and Sabine walked downstairs, softly chatting among themselves.

"Mama, papa, can I maybe hang out with my friends today? I promise to stay and help in the bakery all day tomorrow." Marinette questioned softly. Her mother glanced up and gave her a kind smile before she nodded and disappeared into the kitchen behind her husband. Ayla hugged her tight before she dragged her out of the bakery. Tikki meowed and quickly followed. Marinette noticed and smiled. She reached down and picked up the kitten, placing her in her backpack where she liked to stay.

"So, your parents let you get a pet finally." Adrien stated softly. He knew she'd had the kitten for a while since he was Chat but she didn't know that.

"Yep. This little troublemaker followed me home one afternoon after I'd gone by a fabric store to get the fabric I needed to complete my entry for your Wedding Fashion contest. Mama and papa let me keep her." She stated smiling. Tikki let out a meow from the backpack and Marinette felt her move to settle down and get comfortable.

"Well enough about the kitten. What movie you guys want to see?" Nino questioned as they climbed onto the subway. Adrien glanced at him and shrugged before he went back to watching Marinette. He looked away quickly when she looked up at him. He gasped, wrapping his arm around her waist when the subway jerked, slowing to a stop. She looked up at him blushing.

"Careful princess." He whispered in her ear teasing. Marinette frowned a tiny bit confused. She only smiled and shook her head, choosing to ignore it.

"I don't care what we see dude. I'm hanging out with my best buds for the first time in forever." Nino stated. They all four got off the subway and walked the rest of the way to the theater. Marinette glanced down when she felt Adrien's had brush against hers. She couldn't help but smile. She glanced up at him, watching as the wind blew his hair.

"So…what have you been up to?" she questioned softly. He glanced down at her and smiled.

"Oh, you know…this and that. Running a company…and other things." He stated, looking away. When they arrived at the theater they were thankful it wasn't very crowded. Adrien insisted on paying for the tickets.

During the movie, Marinette ended up sitting between Adrien and Ayla. She glanced at Adrien and noticed he was watching her. He quickly looked back at the film when she caught him. About halfway through the movie Nino got a phone call, having an emergency gig come up so he had to leave. Ayla relaxed and glanced at Adrien. Marinette frowned when she noticed her best friend nod.

"What are you two planning?" she questioned confused. Adrien reached into his pocket and pulled out a small black box with red symbols on it. Marinette's eyes widened, recognizing the box that held Tikki's earrings. She looked at her two friends with tears in her eyes.

"Ayla told me everything m'lady." Adrien whispered, opening the box. Marinette looked down at the red and black dotted earrings.

"Paris needs Ladybug." He whispered, "I need Ladybug." Marinette slowly took the earrings and put them in.

"I am Tikk- '' a small voice stated. Marinette smiled with tear filled eyes when she saw the small ladybug kwami. She quickly grabbed the kwami and hugged her as tight as she could.

"I missed you." Marinette whispered. Ayla and Adrien smiled watching the two smiling. The small goddess of life and good luck was crying. Marinette looked at the Adrien confused.

"But…I don't understand." She whispered confused. Adrien and smiled and opened his shirt, letting Plagg fly out into the open.

"I am Plagg. Kwami to Chat Noir." He dramatically announced. He flew up into Marinette's face.

"Got any cheese?" He questioned, keeping a straight face. He smiled at his other half as she laughed at him. Marinette hugged Adrien as tight as she could.

"Who would have thought I would love two different men who turned out to be the same." She whispered as she hugged him. Adrien sighed and hugged her back as gently as he could. He rested his head on top of her smiling.

"I finally found my lady." He whispered.

 ** _Well there is that little one-shot. Hope you liked it. Don't forget to leave me a review on what you thought. Until Next time. Snowbeam12._**


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